Researchers Dr Franklin Nobrega and Rachel Buchanan looking through samples in the phage collection
Bowel Research UK researchers have discovered a new type of bacteriophage – viruses that target and destroy bacteria – that could be used in the future treatment of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), according to research published in Nucleic Acids Research today, Thursday 20 November 2025.
Bacteriophages, also called phages, have been hailed as a potential solution to antimicrobial resistance because they enter and destroy specific bacteria, unlike antibiotics which kill both good and bad bacteria in the gut. Research in this area has historically been very difficult as there was no established way to share data among scientists on phages and what bacteria they target.
Scientists, led by Dr Franklin Nobrega at the University of Southampton, created an open-source library of phages and their bacterial hosts. These phages were characterised extensively, and this data is accessible at www.klebphacol.org. This resource is collaborative, meaning that other researchers are welcome to use and contribute to the collection, expanding its reach and impact. This library of phages has already been shared with 30 labs across 12 countries.
Bowel Research UK scientist Dr Franklin Nobrega, based at the University of Southampton, said: “Some of these newly identified phages can be found in people’s guts across the world, in everyone from pre-term babies to older adults. They were found in healthy guts, so we know they are important for good gut health.
“The presence of certain phages can predict how severe diseases like bowel cancer and inflammatory bowel disease are going to be, so our discovery, along with our new library of phages, paves the way for more research to understanding more about these diseases and ultimately improve treatments.”
The researchers examined a phage called RothD that could not be assigned to any existing viral family using standard classification tools. Because RothD targets gut-associated bacteria, they expanded the search to gut phage databases. This led them to discover a new gut-related phage family, called Felixviridae.
Kathryn Pretzel-Shiels, CEO of Bowel Research UK, said: “Research like this is crucial in understanding the best way to harness the power of the microbiome to prevent and treat bowel conditions. We’re enabling more research to help scientists fully understand the role our gut microbiome plays in maintaining a healthy gut and protecting us from bowel disease”.
KlebPhaCol: A community-driven resource for Klebsiella research identified a novel phage family is published in Nucleic Acids Research and is available online
Colourised phage infecting bacteria
Read more about this research in our Research Hub, or watch the video below:
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